* * * *
I meant to go outside to find someone else to beg to be my valentine. Instead, I collapsed in the hall with a dream tripping my feet.
A thin, bare shell of darkness covered my eyes. I could easily see shapes through it. Swirls of grey floated in and out of my frame of vision. Voices whispered. Some sounded like grating, unintelligible noise. Others spoke in clear tones.
Regardless of the sounds of the voices, the message was clear. “Free us.”
Unable to move, blinking but seeing nothing more than shadow, I lay trapped in a hellish unfeeling world.
Then she came. She stood out in vibrant clarity, her taupe grown robbing the surrounding shades of grey of their unique beauty. Her pale face held a kindness I’d never before witnessed.
“Child,” she whispered. “You can see me as the others cannot. Stand strong though you lack Strength. Be calm though you lack Peace. Wait for Wisdom. She will find you.”
Pain burst in the back of my head. “Move!” someone yelled. I forced my small legs to move, taking steps into the unknown with hands outstretched, hoping I wouldn’t fall. Hoping that if I did, someone would catch me.
The dream shifted, pulling me deeper.
I ran through the tall grass, the fronds whipping my face, making tiny cuts as I passed. The dry rustle of the grass behind me marked my pursuers.
I struggled to pull myself from the dream. Why was I always running? Once again, I’d merged with my past self.
“Come on, little one. Tell us what you saw,” a voice laughed.
A claw raked my back parting flesh. I screamed in pain and terror.
“Bethi, wake up!”
I woke swinging. The flat of my palm connected with Luke’s face. He looked surprised and quickly captured my hand in his gentle fingers.
Tears leaked from the corners of my eyes as the residual pain lingered on my back. “Get away from me.”
“Bethi, I’m sorry—”
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry... Try being something else for a change. Like on time,” I snapped picking myself up off the floor.
Hurt reflected in his eyes as he picked up a glass from the floor and handed it to me. “Here’s the drink you asked for.”
I took the glass and watched him walk away. He was always doing that. Walking away. But then again, so was I. We were hopeless.
Chapter Fifteen
I sipped the water and slowly walked the halls. After the pain had faded from my back, I regretted my words. I roamed, slightly lost, and hoped to find Luke, but I didn’t see him anywhere.
We were at a stalemate. He wanted to wait, and I desperately needed to Claim him now. Neither of us wanted to bend. Well, I’d been willing to bend by selecting someone else, temporarily. But he didn’t like that idea either. I needed a way to convince him to help me before it was too late. He didn’t seem to understand the risks. The attack on the way here showed the desperation of the Urbat. What would they do next? I needed to Claim Luke to calm the dreams so I could focus on their real message. It would also make it easier for him to find me if they took me. If I were completely honest with myself, I just wanted to Claim him because he was mine. Done. Forget the Urbat. Forget the whole the-world-will-burn crap. I just wanted Luke. I sighed. But I couldn’t just forget everything. Elder Joshua concerned me. Having the pack of Urbat pull back concerned me. Why hadn’t they attacked? There had to be something more, something big going on that I hadn’t yet figured out. And I needed to, fast.
A few more steps, and I recognized where I was. The door to the padded room stood before me. Closed, but I didn’t care. I needed help. Maybe the Elders could help me force Luke’s hand. I opened it, surprising Nana, Grey, Sam, and a new guy.
“Oh,” I mumbled. “Sorry.” I moved to close the door but Nana stopped me.
“It’s all right, Bethi. Come in. This is Elder Joshua. We were just discussing you.”
The Urbat Elder. He watched me closely, and I made sure to keep my face a blank mask. Having him here was better. We could keep an eye on him. I again wished there was a way to control him.
Inspiration struck. Finally! Luck was on my side.
Closing the door, I smiled pathetically at the group. “Sorry for interrupting. Nana, what’s your policy on killing potential mates.”
Nana looked concerned, Grey amused, and Sam curious. Joshua’s reaction was just as I’d hoped. Cautious. Trying to figure me out.
“It’s Luke,” I said to Nana. “He’s being completely stubborn about my age, and I think I’m going to hurt him pretty soon.”
Grey actually laughed. Nana smiled in understanding.
“Do you have time to take a break and help me talk some sense into him?” I asked her. I knew there was no talking sense into him. He’d already explained he didn’t have a pack leader because he didn’t want to be forced to follow rules. Elders only enforced laws. I just needed to talk to her in private, away from the other Elders.
“Certainly,” she agreed standing. “I’ll return promptly,” she assured the rest.
Anticipation made my head spin. I wrapped my arm through Nana’s and leaned on her for support as we walked the halls. I’d found a way to stop my dreams, a way to forestall the next Urbat attack, a way to keep tabs on Joshua, and maybe a way to force Luke to hold still so I could Claim him.
I planned to Claim Joshua temporarily. Sure there would be risks. Luke would be both furious and hurt with my solution. Joshua would have the ability to find me wherever I went as long as we were Claimed. But the benefits outweighed the risks. Joshua would be driven to protect me. Even from his own kind.
The real problem was getting Joshua to let me bite him. I needed to get him alone, play it carefully, and hope Luke would forgive me afterward.
“Can you tell Luke to meet us in our room?”
“Already done,” she assured me.
The door opened before we reached it. Luke stood there waiting.
Nana preceded me. His eyes tracked my progress as I shuffled through the door. My heart beat heavily, and I suffered a moment of doubt. His declaration of what I mean to him, all the times he’d come after me...If I did this, it would do more than hurt him. I wanted to go to him, wrap my arms around his waist, and hold him tight. But I knew he wouldn’t let me. His resistance to us as a couple was the whole problem. I’d lived too many short lives. I wasn’t about to let any opportunity pass by in this one. I would solve our problem for us. I just hoped he wouldn’t hate me afterwards.
“’Bout time you’re where you should be,” I grumbled struggling with the guilt that filled me. As I passed him, he reached out, his fingers tracing the shell of my ear and tucking back a loose strand of hair. I forced my feet to keep moving.
“Now,” Nana started, sitting on the couch and waiting for Luke to close the door and join us. “What is the problem here?”
Luke stood beside my chair, his hands tucked casually in his pockets. He glanced at me a clear question in his eyes. Oh, the games I played.
“Before we start is it possible for you not to share this with the rest of the Elders? I know you have a special connection with them and everything,” I glanced at Luke quickly, playing into my hesitation, “but I really don’t want anyone else knowing this. I mean you can tell if someone is close enough to hear, too, right?”
“Of course. For the moment, we have privacy. And I won’t share the details of private conversations unless I ask first.”